This invention relates to saddles used for riding horses and, more particularly, to a statically and dynamically self-adjusting and orthopedically-correct saddle comprising, a pair of flat resiliently-flexible first bars each having a rear portion disposed to lie on a horse's back along opposite sides of the horse's spine and generally parallel thereto and a front portion disposed to follow a curve from the rear portion down and alongside the horse's withers; a seat portion comprising a rear portion including a seat and a cantel and a front portion comprising a pair of flat resiliently-flexible second bars extending forward from the seat, the seat portion being positioned with the second bars disposed over and parallel to the front portion of respective ones of the first bars, the seat portion further being attached to the pair of first bars at respective first points located in the rear portion and respective second points located in the front portion, the seat being positioned in a middle one-third of the saddle with a center point thereof under a center of gravity of a rider sitting thereon and over a low point in the horse's back; a pair of first elastomeric members connecting the seat portion to the pair of first bars at respective ones of the second points; a pair of second elastomeric members connecting the seat portion to the pair of first bars at respective ones of the first points, the first elastomeric members and the second elastomeric members being of a silicone foam material; a girth; a pair of stirrup straps; means for attaching the girth to the saddle carried by the seat portion; and, means for attaching the pair of stirrup straps to respective ones of the pair of flat second bars at a distance in front of the center of gravity of a rider equal to a distance between the rider's ankle and ball of the rider's foot; wherein, the first elastomeric members and the second elastomeric members are annular in shape; and additionally comprising, retaining means passing through each of the first elastomeric members and the second elastomeric members for attaching and retaining the first elastomeric members and the second elastomeric members between the seat portion and the pair of first bars; and wherein additionally, each of the first bars is covered on a side facing the horse's back with, an under layer of a foam material adhesively bonded to the first bar, a layer of individual balls of unbonded upholstery material exhibiting the qualities of Dacron disposed over the under layer, a layer of neoprene disposed over the layer of individual balls of unbonded upholstery material to contain the layer of individual balls of unbonded upholstery material in a compartment formed of the layer of neoprene and the under layer of foam material, and an outside covering over the first bar on one side and over the layer of neoprene on an opposite side, whereby, as the horse's back flexes and moves in motion, the foam material and neoprene compressibility and restoratively move in response to dynamic motions of the horse's back and the balls of the unbonded upholstery material shift, move, and compress to fill in low places and thereby dynamically shape to the horse's back at times of greatest dynamic forces.
Except for the occasional bareback rider, most people riding horses employ a saddle. While people have ridden horses for different purposes for many years, the saddle itself has undergone very little change from the earliest saddles. Mostly, the few changes in saddles are the result of changes in material rather than any changes in the way the saddle and its supporting tree are designed. Unfortunately, those changes which have taken place are mostly esthetic changes to appeal to the rider's sense of perceived value. Virtually no consideration has been given to the comfort of the horse and little more given to providing the rider with the best platform from which to ride the horse.
Unlike the seat of an automobile or other vehicle which is mounted to a stable base and merely has to support the rider in a virtually static environment for long periods without causing pain or fatigue, a saddle for horseback riding is attached to a living and dynamically-active base, i.e. the back of a horse. As depicted in FIG. 1, the back of a horse 10 has a raised portion at the base of the neck at the withers 12, a low point at 14 (between the 14th and 18th vertebrae), and another raised portion at the rump 16. Opposite the horse's back is its belly 18. Horses come in all sizes and shapes. In some, the withers 12 is quite high and provides a well-defined ridge. In others, it is of little consideration with respect to saddle fit. While always present to some degree, in some horses, the low point 14 is almost unnoticeable while in a so-called "swayback" horse, it is a definite valley. Laterally, some horses have a flat back and in others the back is quite rounded.
As depicted in FIGS. 2 and 3, some of the first "saddles" were actually pack racks 20 employed to allow the horse 10 to carry loads strapped thereto. A pack rack 20 could be made by lashing a pair of X-members 22 to a pair of side bars 24. A blanket 26 was then placed on the horse's back for protection and the pack rack 20 fastened in place with a belly band 28. The load could then be tied to the X-members 22 to prevent it from falling off. The weight of the load was then distributed on the horse's back without impinging on the spine by the side bars 24. Later, the pack rack 20 was easily adapted to make a saddle by raising the side bars 24 slightly, attaching a seat to the side bars 24, and then throwing a blanket over it to add some padding for the rider.
A so-called Western saddle 30 as depicted in FIG. 4 evolved out of the foregoing background. The heart of the Western saddle 30 is the saddle tree 32; which, if one notes the construction thereof, is merely a modification of the pack rack of FIGS. 2 and 3. Early Western saddle trees 32 were made of wood fastened together and covered with rawhide which, when it dried, made the saddle tree 32 a rigid and virtually indestructible unit. While fiberglass has replaced the rawhide in some Western saddles, there are still many Western saddles being built today employing rawhide. In fact, for heavy duty use for cattle roping and the like, a saddle with a rawhide covered wooden saddle tree 32 is still the most durable and, for such uses, is an exception to the discussion herein and the present invention. As depicted in FIG. 4, the Western saddle 30 comprises leather coverings and skirts (indicated by the dashed lines 34) stitched over the saddle tree 32. The stirrups are hung from straps 36 attached to the tree 32 and the girth 38 (which replaced the pack rack's belly band) is attached to metal rings or slots (not shown) in the skirts 34.
The "fit" of a Western saddle 30 is generally a happenstance thing for the horse 10. Basically, the leather of the coverings and skirts 34 is somewhat stiff and some padding is placed between the leather and the tree 32. All in all, however, the pressure points are at the "legs" 40 of the tree 32. The forward part of the Western saddle 30 goes over the withers 12. Typically, the tree 32 of a Western saddle 30 is so long that place the weight of the rider (sitting on the back one-third of the saddle) is far to the rear of the low point 14 of the horse's back. If the horse is short in length of back, a rider in a large Western saddle 30 may actually be sitting up on the horse's rump 16. Between the shape of the saddle 30, the shape of the horse's back, the effects of gravity, and the effects of the horse's back moving and elongating in motion, the saddle 30 will tend to move to a "natural" settling point. If the saddle 30 appears to be of an improper fit, many corrective devices are available--virtually none of which take the horse's comfort into consideration. The most common form of "adjustment" (since no other is available) is to add more padding in the form of more or a thicker saddle pad 42. This usually has a detrimental effect as it adds thickness around the withers 12 in particular, thereby forcing the saddle 30 to the rear of the horse 10. If the saddle 30 tends to move to the rear from where the rider thinks it should be, a chest strap 44 is sometimes employed. To counteract forward movement (as in going downhill), a crupper 46 is sometimes connected from the saddle 30 around the base of the horse's tail. Working ropers often put on several saddle pads 42 (to protect the horse 10 in this case) and then may use all of the above plus a rear cinch strap 48 to prevent forward rotation of the saddle 30 when a large force is applied to the saddle horn 50 as during roping a large steer.
The English saddle 52 of FIGS. 5 and 6 was developed more for pleasure riding, showing, and jumping. While, like its Western counterpart, it comes in many varieties for specialized uses, the basic components are the same. Again, the heart is a saddle tree 32'. In this case, the saddle tree 32' comprises a pair of bars 54 connected by a seat 56. It may be of a unitary or separate component construction in this regard. The bars 54 (whether separate or integral) have rear portions 58 that lie along the back of the horse 10 on either side of the spine and front portions 60 which extend downward toward the front shoulders of the horse 10. The girth 38 and stirrup straps (or "leathers") 36 share a common point of attachment to the saddle tree 32' at the front thereof where the front portions 60 and the rear portions 58 meet. While not so prevalent with modern materials, in older English saddles the above-described construction was prone to breakage as the result of poor saddle fit and changes in the horse's shape during movement--particularly during jumping and running at the gallop wherein the horse's back it subject to extremes of extension. Since the bars 54 are joined only by the material of the seat 56 (and quite often were formed of the same piece of wood) and the girth 38 is attached at the front of the saddle tree 32', a wooden seat 56 could split lengthwise or the wooden seat 56 and bars 54 could break laterally from unsupported forces--particularly when landing from a jump with force on the stirrups pulling in opposite directions.
The problems of the above-described saddles and the saddle trees which support them are depicted in simplified form in FIGS. 7 through 12. As depicted in FIG. 7, the rump 16 and back of the horse 10 are wider than the buttocks 62 of the rider 64. The seat 56 is supported by the spaced bars 54 and the top of the seat 56 is curved to fit the curve of the horse 10. The rider 64 is supported by the muscles of the buttocks 62 in combination with the pelvic and leg bones at the two points indicated by the arrows 66. As a platform upon which to sit, therefore, the seat 56 is subjected to a lateral rocking motion as a result of the sides of the rump 16 of the horse 10 alternatingly moving up and down during gaits such as walking when the horse's rear legs clearly move separately. As depicted in FIG. 8, the front to back aspects of a rigid saddle as a platform upon which to sit are no better. The horse's front shoulder blades rise and fall as indicated by the arrow 68. The rump 16 rises and falls as indicated by the arrow 70. The back extends as indicated by the arrows 72. The back also arches and sideflexes. In particular, the back of a large racehorse (16-161/2 hands high) may arch as much as three inches at full gallop. Since most show horses are not put into more than a slow cantor, realistically the major arch of consideration is more in the order of one inch; but, it is to be understood that a quarter of an inch of saddle mis-fit can cause extreme pain to a horse. In addition to potentially causing pain to the horse, from the rider's point of view all these dynamic movements of the horses back result in varying degrees of fore, aft, and lateral rocking motions of the saddle "platform" 52. The lateral rocking phenomenon during walking is depicted in greater detail in FIGS. 9-12. The left side of the rump 16 raises raising the left side of the saddle 52 as depicted in FIG. 9. Momentarily, the rider 64 is supported by the left side of his/her buttocks 62. The rider 64 then rolls to the right as depicted in FIG. 10 so as to gain bi-lateral support. This results in a rotation of the pelvis to the right accompanied by necessary adjustments to the back, shoulders, neck, and head. As depicted in FIGS. 11 and 12, the right side of the rump 16 then raises raising the right side of the saddle 52. Momentarily, the rider 64 is supported by the right side of his/her buttocks 62. The rider 64 then rolls to the left to again gain bi-lateral support. This results in a rotation of the pelvis to the left accompanied by the necessary adjustments to the back, shoulders, neck, and head. The process then repeats, and repeats, and repeats.
Twenty years ago, Matthias Gorenschek, a European saddle maker who had brought his craft to the United States some years previously, filed for a patent on what seems to be the first true attempt at changing the design and performance of a saddle employing contemporary materials--in particular, fiberglass. The Gorenschek saddle was ultimately patented in 1974 as U.S. Pat. No. 3,835,621. By building his saddle tree of fiberglass, Gorenschek hoped to gain flexibility and adaptability while greatly reducing the weight of the saddle (particularly with respect to a Western saddle wherein the saddle tree itself weighs several pounds). The elements of the Gorenschek saddle are shown in FIGS. 13-15. There are a pair of bars 54' somewhat like those of the English bars 54 (Gorenschek having been trained as a saddlemaker of English style saddles) only flat and of several layers of fiberglass cloth bonded with resin. Like the English bars 54, Gorenschek's bars 54' have rear portions 58' that lie along the back of the horse 10 on either side of the spine and front portions 60' which extend downward over the front shoulders of the horse 10. Being of fiberglass, the bars 54' can be shaped to more closely fit the shape of the horse in those areas and, therefore, hopefully distribute the weight more uniformly. The Gorenschek saddle was designed primarily with the comfort of the horse in mind (unfortunately, disregarding the anatomy of the rider in the process) and, therefore, each pair of bars 54' was preferably formed over a plaster cast of the back of the horse for which it was intended.
The other major component of the Gorenschek saddle was a seat portion 74. The seat portion 74 was also formed of fiberglass layers and consisted of a rear portion 76 comprising the seat and cantel of typical saddle shape and front portions 78 shaped to extend downward and fit over the front portions 60' of the bars 54'. The Gorenschek saddle tree was assembled as shown in FIG. 15 with the seat portion 74 attached to the bars 54' with screws, bolts, or rivets as at the points labelled 80. A front arch 82 of fiberglass was connected across the front portions 78 and also acted as a handle for carrying the saddle or for the mounting of a saddle horn 50. The girth 38 was attached by connecting straps 84 and the stirrup straps 36 were attached to the bars 54' behind the front portions 78 as shown. Padding in the form of conventional horsehair batting or the like and a leather covering stitched over the saddle tree of FIG. 15 completed the saddle. No saddle horn 50 and a plain leather covering closely shaped to the bars 54' and seat portion 74 produced a saddle more English in nature while a saddle horn 50 on the front arch 82 along with tooled leather and wider skirts and the like produced a more Western-looking version of the Gorenschek saddle.
While it was intended to be far and away a more horse-considerate saddle than its predecessors, unfortunately, the Gorenschek saddle fell short of being a saddle which fulfilled the needs of either the horse or the rider. The front portions 60' of the bars 54' are firmly attached to the front portions 78 of the seat portion 74 as with screws or bolts. Thus, the two front portions 60' and the two front portions 78 comprise two composite structures which are supposed to provide the desired flex and adaptability of the Gorenschek saddle. The idea being that when the right shoulder blade of the horse raised, the right front portions 60' and front portions 78, in combination, would flex upward and the remainder of the saddle would remain stable. The goal was a good one in theory; but, did not work when implemented. If the fiberglass of the bars 54' and the front portions 78 of the seat portion 74 are made thin enough to provide the required flexibility, they are too fragile and will crack from that flexing. If they are made thick enough to be durable, there is no flexibility and the Gorenschek saddle essentially acts like the old Western saddle tree 32 except for a better weight distribution and considerably reduced weight. The front arch 82 also tends to act counter to any potential flexibility which is realized. Being custom made for each horse, of course, the problems of even a rigid tree were greatly reduced. In other words, except for the added weight of the wood and rawhide or fiberglass, even a Western saddle tree 32 can be made to function much more acceptably if custom fitted to a particular horse.
The Gorenschek saddle was also based on the proposition that the best place for the saddle is high up on the withers. Thus, the shape and positioning of the bars 54' is made for that specific purpose. In essence, the Gorenschek saddle tree is like an inverted V intended to straddle the withers 12 of the horse 10. Moreover, the rear portions 58 of the bars 54' were not designed to lie parallel to the horse's spine; but rather, to aid in forcing the front portions 60 along the withers 12 and over the shoulder blades. Unfortunately, as will be discussed in more detail hereinafter, all saddles designed to be placed in a more-forward position ultimately work their way to their "natural" position (unless held in place with chest straps or the like)-- and the Gorenschek saddle was no exception. When a saddle is forcibly retained in such a forward position over the withers 14, the result is pressure and pain to the shoulder blades of the horse. In addition to positioning the saddle and its components wrong for the anatomy and comfort of the horse, the Gorenschek saddle also positioned them wrong for the anatomy and correct riding posture of the rider. It didn't provide the rider with a centered position over the low point 14 of the horse's back or a stable and level platform upon which to sit. The stirrups were hung from the bars 54' which, in practice, proved to be a disaster as the bars 54' (being intentionally of a deformable nature--at least under sufficient force) would often twist and dig into the horse's back under the force of a heavy rider standing in the stirrups. The "correction" for this problem was more batting material under the point of contact--sometimes as much as four inches of added padding. This, of course, completely counteracted the attempted perfect fit for weight distribution and, in fact, created a localized pressure point at the point of added padding; and, raised the saddle high on an unstable supporting surface.
In all of the above-described prior art saddles, the rider's weight is typically located in the back one-third of the saddle. The attachment of the girth and stirrups, on the other hand, takes place in the front one-third of the saddle. In particular, the place of attachment of the stirrups has virtually no relationship to the center of gravity of the rider. Thus in standing in the stirrups, the rider is typically forced to move his/her center of gravity far forward from its position when seated in the saddle. In addition to often resulting in rider "wobble" while standing, this can also cause problems when using the stirrups and "leg-aids" to guide the horse through leg movements and pressures.
Wherefore, it is a primary object of this invention to provide a saddle design and saddle tree for the implementation thereof which is the most comfortable for the horse and minimizes any chance of causing injury or pain to the horse even during long periods under saddle.
It is another object of this invention to provide a saddle design and saddle tree for the implementation thereof which greatly reduces the effects of horse movement which are passed through to the rider.
It is yet another object of this invention to provide a saddle design and saddle tree for the implementation thereof which provides a more stabilized platform for the rider.
It is still another object of this invention to provide a saddle design and saddle tree for the implementation thereof which is orthopedically correct for the horse and anatomically correct for the rider.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a saddle design and saddle tree for the implementation thereof which automatically adjusts to the shape of the horse both statically and dynamically.
Other objects and benefits of the invention will become apparent from the detailed description which follows hereinafter when taken in conjunction with the drawing figures which accompany it.